Assamite Clan Newsletter
April, 2006
By Tom Duncan
Khabar: Expensive
Many players are attracted to playing Assamites for their interest in a
particular vampire. I know my inspiration for creating my first
Assamite deck came when I acquired Al-Ashrad, and saw all those
superior disciplines and read his pimpity special text. I wanted to
build a deck that allowed this uber -sorcerer to torporize the table.
Knowing the RPG fluff was certainly a factor. Maybe for you it's
Thetmes, with his Potence and aggravated hand damage, or Tegyrius and
his access to Camarilla tech and superior out-of-clan disciplines.
Whomever your favorite Assamite might be, I'm guessing it's
not...Tansu Bekir. Have you ever sat down at a table excited to play
your "Anwar deck"? For the majority of us, the answer is no.
Assamites are traditionally a big crypt clan - the vampires on the
small end of the scale are in the crypt to support Aziz or Fatima and
Parnassus. This need not be the case, however.
Going Small
Weenie decks have certain strategical advantages of which you are
hopefully already aware. More minions begets more actions and block
attempts. Without going too much into general weenie strategy, just
consider the comparison:
Six one-capacity vampires can bleed for six and/or block six actions.
One six-capacity vampire can bleed for one and block but one action
(library aside). Obviously, the six-cap has the advantage of more
disciplines, and the ability to utilize more library cards. However,
having the proper cards in-hand at the right time requires a very high
degree of deck-building finesse and often luck. If you were heads-up at
the end of a game, would you rather have six caitiff or Vardar
Vardarian?
Small crypt minions will also allow you to bring vampires into play
more quickly, and spend less Pool doing so. This will enable more tools
like locations and equipment to solidify your position, or keep as a
buffer against your predators' actions (Bleed for three? Darn, I'm
down to 15...).
There are disadvantages to going small, of course. The first and
foremost being inferior disciplines. This is especially true with
Assamites, because both Celerity and Quietus become much less effective
at the inferior level. On the plus side, Obfuscate is a top-tier
inferior discipline. It has multiple free stackable stealth cards, a
handful of combat cards, and even a few actions that are effective at
the inferior.
Another disadvantage to consider is fragility. Harika Guljan just
isn't going to fare as well in combat as Fatima - or at the very
least not as often. Paying a blood for a card effect and taking a hand
strike for one put a weenie at a significant percentage loss of blood.
It takes far less effort on the part of your adversaries to put your
weenies into torpor, or burn them outright.
The Up-side to the Down-side
Weenies are not doomed to be stuck with inferior disciplines, but it
will cost you some library space. For most clans, this means using
Master Skill cards to boost abilities. Other methods exist, including,
but not limited to, Vial of Elder Vitae, Sanguine Instruction,
Spontaneous Power, and Infernal Pact. Assamites have their very own
remedy, and her name is Deviki Prasanta.
Deviki Prasanta
Type: Ally
Requires: Assamite
Unique ghoul with 2 life. 1 strength, 0 bleed.
If Deviki is ready during your master phase, you may tap Deviki to
search your library or ash heap for a master: Discipline card and place
that card on a ready Assamite you control.
Deviki allows you to run Master Skill cards with less risk of creating
a Master jam. Master jams are cool if you happen to be a DJ or guitar
player, but in V:tES should be avoided. With Deviki, you can dump your
skill cards into your ash heap during your discard phase, thus allowing
you to play a more pertinent Master card on your next turn. Deviki taps
- not an action - and retrieves it for Ali Kar. Obviously, she can
fish them out of your library before you even draw them, thus
preventing a jam from ever happening. You will want to try to produce
her early in the game to make her effective, so if you haven't
purchased 3 or 4 boxes of Kindred of Most Wanted, you might try to
trade for an additional copy or two to of this excellent rare ally.
When your weenies have been over-stressed and find themselves out of
commission, consider what you have lost. Not a whole lot. If Yazid, the
star of your Black Hand bleed deck, ends up in torpor (by means of what
MUST have been an extremely lucky draw on the part of your opponent),
the majority of your efforts will go toward getting him out. You will
likely need to halt your game plan in order to have a chance at
effectively utilizing your library for the remainder of the game, for
if Yazid isn't in the game, your options will be severely limited.
However, if Kanya Ahktar ends up in torpor, do you care? She is easily
replaced, and if she managed to bleed and get you the edge, or block a
bleed for two, you have gotten your Pool's worth from her. It is
probably easier to simply influence out another vampire. This can get
costly, too, but Assamites have a way around that.
Khabar: Loyalty
Type: Action
Requires: Assamite
+1 stealth action.
Move 2 blood from the blood bank to a younger Assamite in your
uncontrolled region.
Heartblood of the Clan
Type: Master
Requires: Assamite
Cost: 1 pool
Master: unique location.
Any Assamite may take an action to move 1 blood from the blood bank to
this card. During your influence phase, you may move any amount of
blood from this card to any Assamite in your uncontrolled region.
Because you have more vampires in play, you will be able to take these
'peripheral' actions that are often less effective when running
high-capacity Assamites, whose actions are at such a premium as to
nearly require they be directed unless library slots are dedicated to
multi-act tech.
Four Score and More
A small crypt won't be a significant advantage until you have
significantly more minions than your prey. Ideally, you'd like to
have as many as your prey and predator combined or more. Since every
Methuselah starts with the same number of vampires in their
uncontrolled region, you will have to use cards that allow you to pull
new crypt cards, or pay your one Pool and spend four transfers to do
it. Card slots and influence phases can be precious resources, though,
and Assamites have an excellent means by which to get additional
vampires into play.
Web of Knives Recruit
Type: Action
Requires: Assamite
Cost: 1 pool
+1 stealth action.
Put this card in play in your uncontrolled region with 3 training
counters. During your untap phase, burn a training counter from this
card. You may burn counters from no more than two recruits each untap
phase. When the last training counter is burned, move this card to your
ready region; it becomes a 3-capacity, non-unique Assamite with
Celerity [cel], Obfuscate [obf], Potence [pot], Quietus [qui] and 3
blood who is Blood Cursed.
Of the "library-card-becomes-vampire" cards, WoKR is perhaps the
strongest with four disciplines and entering play at full capacity. The
trade-off is of course time. However, if your weenies can take a WoKR
action almost every turn, you will soon have a horde of Assamites to
fling at your prey, all of whom can bleed at +1 stealth under The
Khabar: Community, or Haven Uncovered rush with grapples and signposts.
The standard means by which to get a new crypt cards into your
uncontrolled is Effective Management. However, you can save Master card
slots by using
Clotho's Gift
Type: Action
Requires: Temporis/Obfuscate
Cost: 1 blood
+1 stealth action.
[obf] Move the top vampire from your crypt to your uncontrolled region.
[tem] Move 2 blood from the blood bank to a younger vampire in your
uncontrolled region.
[TEM] Put this card on this acting vampire. Beginning with your next
turn, once during each of your minion phases, this vampire can burn 1
blood to untap.
and let your vampires do it for you during your minion phase.
Combinations of Web of Knives Recruit, Effective Management, Clotho's
Gift, Khabar: Loyalty, and Heartblood of the Clan can keep you
producing vampires at a respectable rate. In a pinch (or if you achieve
a significant minion advantage), they also allow you to gain Pool by
ensuring you have an uncontrolled vampire from whom you can pull your
'free' counters during your influence phase.
The Horde
Looking at our stock of weenie Assamites, we can count nine different
vampires of capacity four or less. Of those, two are from group four,
and only Ali Kar is group 3. This leaves us with six different vampires
in group two. Doubling up on weenies in your crypt is less effective
than it is in larger crypts - the idea is that each vampire is equally
as useful as the next, and influencing them into play with speed is the
priority. Having a duplicate in your uncontrolled is a detriment. With
a maximum of seven Assamites in our crypt, we will need to go
out-of-clan to fill it out to twelve. Or will we...
Fida'i
Clan: Assamite (group 2)
Capacity: 2
Disciplines: cel qui
Independent: Fida'i do not untap as normal during the untap phase.
During your untap phase, any ready Assamite you control with capacity
above 6 can burn 1 blood to untap this Fida'i. Fida'i are not unique
and do not contest. (Blood Cursed)
Fida'i are not unique and do not contest. You can indeed make an
entire crypt of Assamite weenies without adding duplicate unique
vampires. But wait, that means the Fida'i are totally worthless after
they take their first action, or make their first block!! Didn't you
read their special text?! You can only use them if you have an older
Assamite in your crypt, too!!
I beg to differ.
Black Sunrise
Type: Reaction
Requires: Quietus
Only usable by a tapped vampire.
[qui] Only usable during a (D) action directed at you or something you
control. This vampire untaps and attempts to block.
[QUI] As above, but usable on any action.
With inferior Quietus, Fida'i can untap anytime a D action comes your
way, making them excellent chump blockers. If the first action a
Fida'i takes is Web of Knives Recruit, it will have effectively
replaced itself in the ready region. Of course Wake with Evening's
Freshness and Forced Awakening will still allow a Fida'i to be
useful, but a wonderful side effect of Black Sunrise is that if the
block attempt fails, the Fida'i will stay untapped, able to perform
another action. If you choose to run multiple Fida'i in your crypt,
be sure to include a few Black Sunrises above and beyond your usual
amount to help the little fellas out. It is my experience that Fida'i
are incapable of being anything that could be described as
"effective", however. At best, you can make them "useful" by
allowing them to bump your Alamut/Consanguineous Boon angle or stealing
their blood with Tribute to the Master, while trying to squeeze an
action and an occasional block out of them.
You Big Weenie
A variant on the weenie concept is to include one big vampire -
typically in triplicate - in your crypt, and pack the rest with the
tiniest clan-mates you can find. This approach can be effective, but it
becomes difficult to balance your library - choosing cards that only
Thetmes can use severely limits your options when Thetmes gets
Banished, or doesn't show up in your opening draw. Choosing only
cards that the majority of your vampires can use means that you are
paying way too much Pool for a vampire who will under-achieve. The
extra copies of the big vampire can throw a wrench into your
crypt-machine. This strategy can bolster your Fida'i a bit by
allowing them an opportunity to untap, but it is more likely to thwart
the effectiveness of their Assamite sponsor than it is beneficial.
Perhaps the best reason to include a big-cap in your Assamite swarm is
Haqim's Law: Judgment. Ur-Shulgi chooses just about anybody as the
target, and five weenies line up to take their shots, all qualifying to
use Khabar: Honor strikes. Who needs Pushing the Limit?
Name Your Game
Weenie decks thrive when they stay focused - take the same
(presumably VP-gaining) action repeatedly, eventually exhausting your
opponent of his defenses and succeeding through force of numbers.
Toolboxing your build is not advisable, because your vampires lack the
gumption (and superior disciplines) to adapt.
Combat
Celerity, Quietus and Obfuscate all provide maneuvers at inferior.
Celerity (and even Obfuscate) can get you presses and dodges, while
Quietus can manage some weak strikes with no blood cost. If your intent
is combat oust, you are in for a real challenge. I would suggest trying
the Khabar: Honor angle, or using free weapons, either concealed,
disguised, or in the shape of a cane. Paying Pool for equipment in a
weenie deck is ill advised, as they are less likely to be around long
enough to use it much. "Out of Torpor" tech like Catacombs or
Humanitas can also help (especially if Fame-dunking is in the plan), as
can "gain-a-blood" effects like Life in the City and Archetypes.
Perhaps your weenies can Go Anarch and Cry Wolf as a Diversion?
Bleed
This is where weenismites can shine, with access to Obfuscate stealth
and The Khabar: Community. Simple Computer Hackings sprinkled with
Khabar: Glory will put steady pressure on your prey. With five or six
vampires in play, you should be able to eat up the bounce or blocks and
punch a few holes in your prey's armor each turn. Keeping your bleeds
at one or two is responsible enough, and Alamut/Con Boon can serve as
your pool Defense.
Not Combat or Bleed
Other strategies are more difficult to pursue with Assamite weenies.
While Ventrue weenies can gain titles and even vote control of a table,
chances are you will need to rely on bleeding and putting counters on
Alamut to gain votes. While this could lead to permanent titles on the
table for you, remember your vampires are fragile and can't Majesty
every time trouble comes knocking. Managing a bleed and political
module like this would be difficult at best. For weenies, Alamut is
more likely a vote defense mechanism.
Wall or intercept-based builds are going to be difficult to construct
using occasional cel/obf/qui as your discipline set. Permanent sources
of intercept require time and Pool, and Atonement costs most of a
weenie's blood. While it is possible to build the "casual" level
of intercept that you might in any other Assamite build,
table-controlling block capability is not likely to be achieved.
Sticking to Market Square, Media locations, and Mr. Winthrop is
probably your best bet.
Deck Name : Weenimites
Author : Tom Duncan
Description :
It's not the size; it's how you use it.
It's Spring Break, even at Alamut! These Assamites are young, drunk,
and willing to take their tops off for the camera.
Crypt [12 vampires] Capacity min: 2 max: 5 average: 2.92
------------------------------------------------------------
5x Fida'i 2 cel qui Assamite:2
1x Abd al-Rashid 5 CEL QUI obf Assamite:2
1x Anwar 4 cel obf qui Assamite:2
1x Parmenides 4 CEL qui Assamite:2
1x Tansu Bekir 4 OBF cel Assamite:2
1x Ali Kar 3 obf qui Assamite:3
1x Harika Guljan 3 QUI Assamite:2
1x Kanya Akhtar 2 cel Assamite:2
Library [86 cards]
------------------------------------------------------------
Action [30]
4x Clotho's Gift
14x Computer Hacking
4x Khabar: Glory
8x Web of Knives Recruit
Action Modifier [11]
8x Change of Target
3x Cloak the Gathering
Ally [2]
2x Deviki Prasanta
Combat [15]
4x Flash
3x Preternatural Evasion
3x Side Strike
3x Sideslip
2x Taste of Death
Master [20]
1x Alamut
2x Celerity
3x Effective Management
1x Heartblood of the Clan
1x Khabar: Community, The
4x Life in the City
1x Market Square
2x Obfuscate
2x Quietus
2x Tribute to the Master
1x Underworld Hunting Ground
Reaction [8]
8x Black Sunrise
This is a pretty straightforward swarm bleeder. It should generate
vampires and bleed consistently. You won't block anything at stealth,
though I have included a Market Square for the prayer. There is a
little bit of Pool recursion tech, though your primary defense will be
not spending too much Pool. You can gauge just how much "too much"
is on a game-by-game basis.
My playgroup dynamic demands attention to combat cards, so I have
included a handful in my version. Your Meta May Vary. It is possible
you may want to include Kalinda in this type of deck, to utilize her
bleed special. Be sure to add tech to help her regain blood a little
faster. I have not included much stealth in this build, favoring Change
of Target instead. With so many potential actions to take, you should
be able to out-pace your blockers.
Deck Name : Rock 'em Sock 'em Assamites
Author : Tom Duncan
Description :
Bruise and Bruise with wee 'smites.
Crypt [12 vampires] Capacity min: 1 max: 5 average: 2.75
------------------------------------------------------------
4x Fida'i 2 cel qui Assamite:2
1x Abd al-Rashid 5 CEL QUI obf Assamite:2
1x Anwar 4 cel obf qui Assamite:2
1x Parmenides 4 CEL qui Assamite:2
1x Ali Kar 3 obf qui Assamite:3
1x Harika Guljan 3 QUI Assamite:2
1x Sarah Brando 3 CEL !Brujah:2
1x Kanya Akhtar 2 cel Assamite:2
1x Sandra White 1 Caitiff:3
Library [90 cards]
------------------------------------------------------------
Action [18]
3x Ambush
3x Bum's Rush
3x Harass
2x Khabar: Glory
7x Web of Knives Recruit
Ally [2]
2x Deviki Prasanta
Combat [44]
8x Dagon's Call
8x Flash
4x Immortal Grapple
1x Pulled Fangs
4x Scorpion's Touch
2x Taste of Death
9x Taste of Vitae
4x Torn Signpost
4x Trap
Master [20]
1x Celerity
1x Contract
2x Fame
3x Haven Uncovered
1x Heartblood of the Clan
1x Humanitas
4x Life in the City
2x Path of Blood, The
2x Potence
2x Quietus
1x Tribute to the Master
Reaction [6]
6x Black Sunrise
Here, the idea is to repeatedly rush a target until it falls, perhaps
giving it -1 strength in the process. Again, there isn't much
defense in the build other than closely monitoring your spending. The
press combat will put your vampires at great risk, but they should be
able to do more damage than your opponent, and you can decide whether
or not it is more efficient to rescue or replace torporized weenies on
a per game basis. The Taste of Vitaes are there to help avoid this, but
remember that they are not playable if your vampire is going to torpor
already.
The crypt could include Jalal Sayad and another Parmenides or a
Parnassus, for the +1 strength. To keep on theme, I have chosen the
smallest vampires available - even at the cost of going out-of-clan.
However, adding Jalal would help enable your Potence cards, which,
while limited in number, will be important against S:CE and weapon
combat packages. Including Parnassus could also open up the build to
support Blood Dolls or Minion Taps. Either would be able to utilize
Clandestine Contract, which could also be included in small quantities.
Should you choose to include Thetmes, you will definitely want to
Minion Tap him and allow him to refill himself (via Taste of Vitae,
Blood Tears, Master cards, etc), and include Haqim's Law: Judgment.
I'd also recommend a Yoruba Shrine or Secure Haven if you adopt a
Star + Weenies crypt. Just remember, these larger vampires could also
be two or three small vampires in your ready region. Be sure you weigh
your decision carefully - is the extra Pool and slower influence
worth one more discipline at superior? Often it is not.
Khabar: Irreverent
Whatever you choose, it is important to remember that your deck will
flow much differently when you have five, six, or perhaps more vampires
in play when compared to the usual three or four. You can cycle many
more action cards each turn, and by extension more action modifiers.
The small Assamites are weakest in the Obfuscate discipline, but it is
thankfully the most forgiving to use at inferior. Every combat might be
that particular vampire's last, so don't get attached to your
minions. They are there to serve your end, which is getting an oust,
not a nice retirement home on the beach. It is much easier to fall
victim to "minion empathy" when running the bigger vampires, but it
can happen at any time. When you realize you are concerned for poor
Anwar's well being is when you should declare a Bum's Rush with
Lazverinus as the target, just to help you get over it. Throw your
vampires into the fray, and let Caine sort them out. When the game is
over, everybody gets shuffled back into the deck for another go.
Respecting your weenies or considering the risks to their health before
you act will only hinder your efforts. So will The Unmasking and a few
Renegade Garou, but what do you care? Alamut is safe and sound,
diligently guarded by the elders.
Find everything you need to know about playing Assamites at
www.thepathofblood.com!
Comments, Suggestions, and Submissions should be sent to:
veknpontiac RemoveThis @yahoo.com
Special thanks to Merlin Petersen, Official True Brujah Newsletter
Editor, and John Eno, Assamite Newsletter copy-edit mercenary, for
their contributions.
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